Confined volume blasting experiments: Description and analysis

A series of bench-scale blasting experiments was conducted to produce rubble beds for use in retorting experiments. The experiments consisted of blasting oil shale with explosives within a confined volume containing 25% void. A variety of blasting geometries was used to control the fragment size distribution and void distribution in the rubble. The series of well controlled tests provided excellent data for use in validating rock fragmentation models. Analyses of the experiments with PRONTO, a dynamic finite element computer code, and a newly developed fracturing model provided good agreement between code predictions and experimental measurements of fracture extent and fragment size. CAROM, a dynamic distinct element code developed to model rock motion during blasting, was used to model the fully fragmented tests. Calculations of the void distribution agreed well with experimentally measured values. 9 refs., 11 figs., 1 tab.